Ohio Legal Help

What Ohio Legal Help does

Ohio Legal Help is a Columbus, Ohio-based nonprofit organization launched in 2019 to close Ohio's civil justice gap for low-income residents. It was created in response to the Supreme Court of Ohio's Task Force on Access to Justice (2015), which found that 92% of civil legal problems experienced by low-income Americans receive little or no legal help, and provides free online legal information, self-help tools, and court forms to Ohioans living at or below 125% of the federal poverty level across 11 practice areas including family law, housing, consumer debt, public benefits, immigration, seniors, veterans, education, labor and employment, crime and traffic, and court navigation.

The core product is a web-based platform with interactive guided pathways and step-by-step form assistants that produce Ohio-specific court documents for divorce, custody, protection orders, eviction, bankruptcy, probate, criminal record sealing, and other civil matters. The MyOLH account system allows users to save and complete forms on their own schedule, with email and text reminders. Content is reviewed by expert lawyers from legal aid and the private bar, and the platform is offered in 12 languages. Underlying technology relies on third-party services including FormStack for form processing, Twilio for SMS, SendGrid for email, LiveChat and ChatBot for support, and Google Translate for automated multilingual rendering. Distribution is direct-to-consumer via web access and via embedded Virtual Self-Help Centers inside Ohio domestic relations courts in Cuyahoga, Lorain, and Montgomery counties, plus referrals from legal aid organizations, libraries, foodbanks, and community action agencies.

The business model is grant-funded and donation-supported rather than commercial. Primary revenue comes from the Legal Services Corporation, the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation, the Ohio State Bar Foundation, the Columbus Bar Foundation, The Dayton Foundation, the American College of Trial Lawyers, and county court partnership grants. All services are provided free of charge to end users, and the organization does not provide legal advice. The organization is governed by a board including President Sally Bloomfield, Vice President José Bautista, Treasurer John Pinney, and Secretary Ukeme Awakessien Jeter, with Susan Choe serving as Executive Director.

Name

Ohio Legal Help

Legal name

Ohio Legal Help

Website

https://ohiolegalhelp.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ohio Legal Help is a Columbus-based nonprofit that provides free online legal information, self-help tools, and court forms to low-income Ohioans facing civil legal issues across 11 practice areas including family, housing, and immigration.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Self-Help Platform

NAICS

Other Legal Services (54119), Individual and Family Services (6241), Social Assistance (624)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Legal Literacy & Public Legal Education (Know Your Rights) (EDAAAFAI), Victim Services & Witness Assistance (Justice System) (BPAIAFAJ)

Keywords

• Legal self-help platform
• Online legal information
• Civil legal aid resources
• Court form assistants
• Access to justice technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: Primary funding from Legal Services Corporation (LSC) and other foundations supporting access to justice initiatives.
2. Foundation Grants: Funding from Ohio Access to Justice Foundation, Ohio State Bar Foundation, Columbus Bar Foundation, The Dayton Foundation, and American College of Trial Lawyers.
3. Donations: Accepts charitable donations from the public via Donorbox platform.
4. Court Partnerships: Partnership grants from domestic relations courts (Montgomery County, Cuyahoga County, Lorain County) for developing virtual self-help centers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Ohio Legal Help operates a free statewide web platform that provides plain-language civil legal information, guided topic pathways, interactive self-help form assistants, and court forms to low-income Ohioans. The platform also connects users with local legal aid organizations, lawyer referral services, and county court Virtual Self-Help Centers to help them understand and navigate civil legal issues including family law, housing, consumer debt, public benefits, immigration, seniors' issues, and veterans' matters.

Product overview

Ohio Legal Help is a statewide online platform providing free civil legal self-help resources for Ohio residents. The core offering consists of the Ohio Legal Help Platform and MyOLH user account system, which together provide guided pathways across 11 legal topic areas (Family and Safety, Housing, Consumer and Debt, Health and Public Benefits, Immigration, Seniors, Veterans, Crime and Traffic, Going to Court, Education, and Labor and Employment), integrated form assistants, and resource locators. Key products include the Find a Lawyer and Find Your Legal Aid directory tools, the Veteran Resources Tool, and specialized form assistants for divorce, domestic violence protection orders, criminal record sealing, and probate matters. The platform has recently expanded through partnerships with county courts to offer Virtual Self-Help Centers (Lorain County and Montgomery County), providing county-specific online assistance for self-represented litigants. The platform leverages third-party services including Twilio for SMS communications, SendGrid for email, and FormStack for form processing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ohio Legal Help Platform A statewide online platform providing free civil legal information, self-help tools, guided topic pathways, and court forms for Ohio residents to understand and resolve civil legal issues without an attorney.
• MyOLH (My Ohio Legal Help)

Quantifiable outcome

• Addresses the justice gap where 92% of civil legal problems experienced by low-income Americans receive little or no legal help

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

AI capability1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Montgomery County Juvenile CourtcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 October 2025Grant recipient from Dayton Legal Heritage Foundation to develop a new Virtual Self-Help Center in partnership with Montgomery County Juvenile Court.
• Lorain County Domestic Relations and Juvenile CourtcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 July 2025Launched a Virtual Self-Help Center partnership to support self-represented parties navigating divorce, custody, and support matters.
• The Supreme Court of OhiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSteering committee member that convened the Task Force on Access to Justice in 2015. Ongoing funder and advisory committee member guiding Ohio Legal Help's development and content.
• Alliance of Ohio Legal AidscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvisory committee member providing expertise on legal aid delivery and ensuring content accuracy for low-income Ohioans.
• Ohio State Bar AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvisory committee member representing the private bar and helping connect volunteer lawyers for content review.
• National Center for State CourtsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvisory committee member providing expertise on court technology and self-help resources.
• Ohio Judicial ConferencemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvisory committee member representing Ohio courts and supporting self-help resources.
• Ohio Clerk of Courts AssociationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvisory committee member connecting Ohio Legal Help with clerk of courts offices statewide.
• Ohio Domestic Violence NetworkmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvisory committee member and referral partner for domestic violence resources and legal assistance.
• Ohio Association of FoodbanksminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAdvisory committee member and referral partner connecting food-insecure Ohioans with legal resources.
• Ohio Association of Community Health CentersminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAdvisory committee member and referral partner reaching underserved populations through health centers.
• Ohio Library CouncilminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAdvisory committee member and referral partner through public libraries statewide.
• Ohio Association of Community Action AgenciesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAdvisory committee member and referral partner through community action agencies serving low-income Ohioans.
• ACLU of OhiominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdvisory committee member providing civil rights expertise and advocacy perspective.
• Consortium of Ohio County Law LibrariesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAdvisory committee member and referral partner through county law libraries.
• Montgomery County Domestic Relations CourtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner court with dedicated Ohio Legal Help resources page and Virtual Self-Help Center collaboration.
• Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations CourtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner court with dedicated Ohio Legal Help resources page and self-help center collaboration.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Illinois Legal Aid Online: Statewide online platform providing free legal information, self-help form assistants, and lawyer directories to low-income Illinois residents. Closely comparable to OLH in mission, audience, technology model (interactive forms, multilingual support), and reliance on IOLTA and foundation funding.
• Michigan Legal Help: Statewide nonprofit providing free legal information, do-it-yourself form tools, and lawyer directories for self-represented Michigan residents. Operates the same core model (topic pathways, self-help form assistants, statewide court alignment) as Ohio Legal Help.
• Maryland Courts Self-Help Centers: Maryland Judiciary's centralized self-help portal providing court forms, legal information, and virtual self-help center access. Comparable in that it integrates directly with court systems and offers guided form assistants for civil matters.

Peers

• LawHelp.org (Pro Bono Net):

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks3 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ohiolegalhelp
• Facebookfacebook.com/ohiolegalhelp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ohio-legal-help
• Instagraminstagram.com/ohiolegalhelp

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ohio Legal Help